Jamie Carragher insists Liverpool are still in the race to qualify for next season's Champions League.

After a disappointing start to their Premier League campaign, the Reds are unbeaten in their last seven matches following a 3-0 win over Wigan at Anfield on Saturday.

Brendan Rodgers' side are still in the bottom half of the table, eight points behind fourth-placed West Brom, but Arsenal and Tottenham are within touching distance.

And after Manchester United and Chelsea both suffered defeats this weekend, Carragher is adamant Liverpool can close the gap.

"We look as if we have not made a good start, but with winning on Saturday, we are not too far behind the top four," Carragher told BBC Radio 5 Live.

"It is still up for grabs. Besides the top two, and even Manchester United lost on Saturday, a lot of teams are dropping points all over the place.

"From our own point of view, we now want to kick on and make a challenge for that top four place because it seems that everyone is throwing it away."

Following a slow start to the season, which saw the Reds pick up just two points from a possible 15, Carragher believes youngsters Andre Wisdom, Raheem Sterling and Suso have settled into the side and are proving worthy replacements for the likes of Dirk Kuyt and Maxi Rodriguez.

He said: "The owners have come in and looked at it and thought they want to bring in a new manager who will promote players from the academy, which he has done.

"I think it does take time to settle in. It was difficult to replace players like Maxi Rodriguez and Dirk Kuyt due to the financial situation in terms of us spending a lot of money in the last few years. [Rodgers] has been very brave putting young players in and giving them a chance.
Hopefully, we'll see the benefit of that in the future."